Mitt Romney's Freddie Mac-attack on Newt Gingrich has some blowback

As he tries to tie Newt Gingrich to the housing crisis in Florida, Mitt Romney’s criticisms of Freddie Mac are drawing attention to his own campaign and background, which are full of ties to the mortgage giant.

The Associated Press and Daily Caller report that top Romney advisers and surrogates were paid lobbyists and consultants for Freddie Mac and other interests in the thick of the housing crisis.

Among the consultant-lobbyists on Romney's team: Former Rep. Susan Molinari and Vin Weber.

Also, AP and the Democratic group American Bridge 21st Century has pointed out that one of Romney’s investments yielded $500,000 from the federally backed lender, Fannie Mae. Romney says it was derived income derived from a blind trust.

Then, CNN reported that Romney was a "distinguished panelist" at Fannie Mae Foundation housing conference in 2004 – just as the housing bubble started to inflate. But it was before Fannie and Freddie began taking on risking home loans.

Romney’s campaign told CNN that the governor was at the conference to tout his affordable housing initiatives.